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Lamar Odom
Lamar Joseph Odom (born November 6, 1979) is an American professional basketball forward who last played with the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was named NBA Sixth Man of the Year and won two NBA championships as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers. Odom played college basketball for the Rhode Island Rams before being drafted in the first round with the fourth overall pick by the Los Angeles Clippers in the 1999 NBA Draft. He was named to the NBA All-Rookie Team and played four seasons with the Clippers. He signed as a restricted free agent with the Miami Heat, where he played one season before being traded to the Lakers. Odom spent seven seasons with the Lakers, who traded him to Dallas. He was traded back to the Clippers in 2012. Early life Odom was born in South Jamaica, Queens, New York City, New York. His father was a heroin addict and his mother died of colon cancer when he was twelve years old. He was raised by his grandmother Mildred. In his first three years of high school, Odom played for Christ The King Regional High School in Middle Village, Queens. He transferred first to Redemption Christian Academy in Troy, New York for the basketball season and then to St. Thomas Aquinas High School in New Britain, Connecticut. Odom was named the Parade Magazine Player of the Year in 1997. He was named to the USA Today All-USA 1st Team as a senior. During his youth, Odom was teamed with Elton Brand of the Philadelphia 76ers and Ron Artest of the Los Angeles Lakers on the same AAU team. College In 1997, Odom attended the University of Nevada at Las Vegas and enrolled in summer classes. However, after a Sports Illustrated report questioned his unexpectedly high score of 22 out of 36 in the ACT, the school released him in July. That same summer, he received a citation for soliciting prostitution following an undercover operation by the Las Vegas police. Later, an NCAA inquiry found Odom received payments amounting to $5,600 from booster David Chapman. Coach Bill Bayno was fired and UNLV was placed on probation for four years. Odom transferred to the University of Rhode Island but was forced to sit out the 1997–98 season. Odom played one season at Rhode Island in the Atlantic 10 Conference, where he scored 17.6 points per game and led the Rams to the conference championship in 1999. His three-pointer against Temple University at the buzzer gave the Rams their first A-10 Tournament title. NBA career Los Angeles Clippers (1999–2003) Odom declared his eligibility for the 1999 NBA Draft after his freshman year at the Rhode Island in 1999. The 6 foot 10 inch forward was selected by the Los Angeles Clippers with the fourth overall pick. In his first season with the Clippers, Odom averaged 16.6 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game, including 30 points and 12 rebounds in his NBA debut. He was named to the 2000 NBA All-Rookie First Team. Odom was involved in controversy in November 2001 when he was suspended for violating the NBA's anti-drug policy for the second time in eight months. It is generally accepted that Odom's suspension was for use of marijuana, which is not subject to the NBA's harsher "Drugs of Abuse" rules. At the time, he admitted to smoking marijuana. He was then a restricted free agent and was acquired by the Miami Heat in the off-season. The Clippers declined to match the Heat's offer for Odom after matching another offer Miami made to Elton Brand. Miami Heat (2003–04) Along with budding superstar Dwyane Wade and the dynamic Caron Butler, Odom had a very notable season with the Miami Heat, in which they advanced to the second round of the playoffs after being 11 games under .500 on March 2. He had a very solid season compared to his sub-par season with the Clippers the previous year. After the season, Odom was traded in a package with Caron Butler and Brian Grant to the Los Angeles Lakers for All-Star Shaquille O'Neal. Los Angeles Lakers (2004–11) In his first year with the Los Angeles Lakers, Odom incurred a left shoulder injury which forced him to miss the end of the 2004–05 NBA season. The Lakers finished out of the playoffs for only the 5th time in franchise history.Following the 2004–05 season, they re-hired former coach Phil Jackson. In the first half of the 2005–06 NBA season, Odom displayed inconsistency while playing with the Lakers. However, as Los Angeles progressed towards the end of the season, his performance steadily improved. Along the way, he posted consecutive triple-doubles for the first time as a Laker against the Golden State Warriors and Portland Trail Blazers. The Lakers were eliminated in 7 games in the first round of the playoffs against the Phoenix Suns, after the Lakers lost a 3–1 series lead. Battling injuries, Odom was limited to 56 games in the 2006–07 season, but finished with an average of 15.9 points and 9.8 rebounds per game. In a rematch of the previous year's series, the Lakers were again defeated by the Phoenix Suns in the first round of the 2007 NBA Playoffs. After young center Andrew Bynum went down with a knee injury during the 2007–08 NBA season. and Pau Gasol was acquired by the Lakers midseason, Odom played well, averaging 15.3 points, 12 rebounds, and 4 assists per game. Odom finished the season with 14.2 ppg 10.6 rpg and 3.5 apg. Odom's numbers were down in the Finals, however, where he averaged 13.5 points, 9.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game, with the Lakers losing in the 2008 NBA Finals to the Boston Celtics. At the beginning of the 2008–09 NBA season, Odom was moved to the bench and served as a sixth man, backing up the Lakers' frontcourt of Gasol and Bynum. When Bynum was injured in a game against the Memphis Grizzlies in January, Odom returned to the starting lineup. In the month of February, Odom, playing 36 minutes per game, averaged 16.5 points, 13.4 rebounds (4.9 offensive and 9.5 defensive), 2.4 assists, 1.4 blocks, and .9 steals. The February run included a good performance at Quicken Loans Arena at Cleveland. With 15 points in the 3rd quarter, Odom helped the Lakers out of a 12-point deficit to turn it into a 10 point victory, breaking Cleveland's 23 game home win-streak. He finished the game with 28 points, 17 rebounds and 2 assists. Odom adjusted back to his sixth man role when Bynum returned for an April 9 home matchup versus the Denver Nuggets. Odom finished his season with 11.3 points, 8.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.0 steals and 1.7 blocks with 29.7 minutes per game. He won his first NBA championship when the Lakers defeated the Orlando Magic in the 2009 NBA Finals. During the 2009 Los Angeles Lakers off-season as a free agent, Odom was courted heavily by the Miami Heat, the team that traded him to the Lakers in 2004. Despite pleas from Miami guard Dwyane Wade Kobe Bryant remained optimistic Odom would return to Los Angeles to team up with newly acquired forward and Odom's fellow New Yorker, Ron Artest. After a month of tedious negotiations, on July 31, 2009 the Lakers announced that they had agreed to a four-year deal worth up to $33 million with Odom. The investment would pay off as Odom would play a crucial role for the Lakers on the way to another NBA Championship, with the Lakers winning over the Boston Celtics in the 2010 NBA Finals. Odom continued his strong play for the Lakers with another solid season in the 2010–11 season where he posted career highs in 3 point shooting percentage (.382) and overall field goal percentage (.530). He started 35 games in Bynum's absence during the season and averaged 16.3 points and 10.2 rebounds in those starts. In 47 games off the bench, Odom averaged 13.5 points, 7.5 rebounds in 28.4 minutes. Meeting the requirement to come in as a reserve more games than he started, Odom was awarded the NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award, becoming the first player in Lakers history to do so. During the offseason, he considered taking a break from basketball after a close cousin died and Odom was a passenger in a SUV involved in an accident that killed a teenage cyclist. Dallas Mavericks (2011–12) On December 11, 2011, Odom was traded to the Dallas Mavericks for a first-round draft pick and an $8.9 million trade exception after NBA commissioner David Stern vetoed a proposed three-team trade that would have sent Odom and Rockets teammates Kevin Martin, Luis Scola, and Goran Dragić to the New Orleans Hornets; Chris Paul to the Lakers; and Pau Gasol to the Houston Rockets. Odom felt "disrespected" after he learned of the Hornets trade publicly, and he requested a trade from the Lakers to another contending team. The Lakers were also concerned that Odom's contract was pricey since he was not needed to initiate the triangle offense with Mike Brown replacing Phil Jackson as Lakers coach. The deal was confirmed by the Mavericks on December 11. On March 2, 2012, Odom was assigned to the Texas Legends of the NBA D-League. He had missed the prior three games due to personal reasons. His stint with the Legends was canceled on March 3, 2012 and he returned to the Mavs' active roster. On March 24, Odom did not play in a 104–87 loss to the San Antonio Spurs, the first time he could remember not playing due to a coach's decision. On April 9, 2012, it was announced that Odom had parted ways with the Mavericks. Instead of releasing him, the team listed Odom inactive for the remainder of the season. The move allowed the Mavericks to trade him at the end of the season. In a statement to ESPN, Odom said, "I'm sorry that things didn't work out better for both of us, but I wish the Mavs' organization, my teammates and Dallas fans nothing but continued success in the defense of their championship." Mavericks owner Mark Cuban admitted that a clash between the two during halftime in a game against the Memphis Grizzlies on April 7 was the last straw. Odom reportedly responded angrily when Cuban questioned his commitment, asking if he was "in or out." Return to Clippers (2012–13) On June 29, 2012, Odom was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers as part of a four-team deal. The deal sent Odom to the Clippers, the rights to Tadija Dragićević and cash considerations to the Dallas Mavericks, Mo Williams and the draft rights to Shan Foster to the Utah Jazz, and the draft rights to Furkan Aldemir to the Houston Rockets. Filmography NBA career statistics Regular season Playoffs Category:Roster